Monday Briefing: Rockets target U.S. troops as Afghanistan withdrawal enters final stage

The Reuters Daily Briefing Monday, August 30, 2021 by Linda Noakes Hello Here's what you need to know. Tens of thousands of desperate Afghans face being left behind, Hurricane Ida pounds Louisiana, and a cautious Fed keeps world stocks happy Today's biggest stories A member of Taliban forces stands guard as Afghan men take pictures of a vehicle from which rockets were fired in Kabul, August 30, 2021 AFGHANISTAN U.S. anti-missile defences intercepted as many as five rockets that were fired at Kabul's airport as the United States rushed to complete its withdrawal from Afghanistan to end its longest war. Having evacuated about 114,400 people, including foreign nationals and Afghans deemed "at risk", U.S. and allied forces are set to complete their own withdrawal by a Tuesday deadline agreed with the Islamist militants. France, Britain and Germany are working on a United Nations proposal aimed at establishing a safe zone in Kabul to allow safe passage for people trying to leave Afghanistan. Chinese State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi told U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a phone call that the international community should engage with Afghanistan's new Taliban rulers and "positively guide" them, China's foreign ministry said. Whipped by the Taliban and shoved from behind by other desperate Afghans, marriage certificate in hand, Sharifa Afzali thrust her cell phone at the U.S. soldier barring the Kabul airport gate. On the other end was her husband, a U.S. Army veteran in Oklahoma. Here's how she fled Afghanistan. President Joe Biden attended a grim homecoming for the U.S. troops killed in a suicide bomb attack in Afghanistan. Water enters a beach house as Hurricane Ida makes landfall in Grand Isle, Louisiana, August 29, 2021 HURRICANE IDA Hurricane Ida pounded Louisiana after sweeping ashore from the Gulf of Mexico, flooding wide areas under heavy surf and torrential rains as fierce winds toppled trees and power lines, plunging New Orleans into darkness after nightfall. Alarmed aid workers raced to get New Orleans' homeless off the streets, a complicated, last-minute push made all the more difficult by a severe outbreak of COVID-19 cases in the state. New Orleans' levees got a $14.5 billion upgrade after Hurricane Katrina. Will they hold? COVID-19 Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine contamination woes in Japan have widened with another million doses being temporarily suspended, after foreign substances were found in more batches and two people died following shots from affected lots. Here's what we know about the contaminated vaccine supplies. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern extended a lockdown in Auckland by two weeks, while officials reported the country's first death linked to the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. Intensive care cases in Australia's New South Wales will hit a peak in October as infections accumulate, said the premier of the country's most populous state, which reported record daily new infections. India's rising output of COVID-19 vaccines and the inoculation of more than half its adult population with at least one dose are raising hopes the country will return as an exporter within months, ramping up from early next year. BUSINESS World stocks hovered around record highs, confident the U.S. Federal Reserve is no rush to step away from massive stimulus. Powell's wait-and-see approach gave investors and market participants some reassurance that the central bank's extraordinary efforts to prop up the economy were likely to support riskier assets a while longer. China's top securities regulator pledged to crack down on mismanaged private funds and weed out fake ones, as the government becomes more assertive in dealing with an industry worth $9.28 trillion Shares of Indian auto parts suppliers rose as much as 14% following a report electric-vehicle maker Tesla was in talks with at least three companies to source critical parts for its planned entry into the country. Sea Ltd's Shopee took just two years to become Brazil's most-downloaded shopping app, winning users to its low-cost marketplace with its game-changing approach to e-commerce: in-app mini-games offering coupons to winning users. Sea's Brazil foray is just one element of its global ambition. Quote of the day "In just one week, they took over the country and in 24 hours they took all our hopes, dreams snatched from in front of our eyes. It was all for nothing." Sosan Nabi 21-year-old graduate Afghanistan's 'Gen Z' fears for future and hard-won freedoms Video of the day North Koreans mark Youth Day with dance party And finally… Dragons fly as Chinese millennials take a shine to gold An e-commerce boom and national pride are fueling the rise in demand for what is known as heritage gold jewellery, which requires intricate craftsmanship and can command premiums of 20% or more over conventional gold jewellery. More from Reuters COVID-19 Investigates Legal news The Great Reboot Thanks for spending part of your day with us. Share your thoughts You are receiving this email because you signed up for newsletters from Reuters. No longer want to hear from us? Unsubscribe from The Reuters Daily Briefing. Terms, conditions, and privacy statement © 2021 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved. 3 Times Square, New York, NY 10036